Virus
by Paradoxilla
Summary: Instead of encountering Ben in the forest in Episode 2 of Season 1, Lee encounters the Cabin Group. How would the addition of this group alter the events of Season 1 and onward, and ultimately, who would live and who die as a result?
1. Maria

Lee watched with a critical eye as a walker devoured a small rabbit, that would have become their food anyway. Lee slowly stood up, as Mark shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other, his forehead covered in a thin layer of sweat. Lee then raised the axe above his head, before bringing it back down onto the walker's skull, and the undead creature slumped forward, producing no more noise.

Mark then walked forward, and the bespectacled man shook his head as he inspected the mess of guts and blood. "Damn, what'd they get this time," Mark asked, disappointed that they didn't acquire another meal.

"Looks like a rabbit," Lee muttered, and he too stared longingly at the deceased animal.

"Well…that's another meal lost," Mark sighed, and the two began walking through the forest, which was vibrant with the sounds of insects and birds "I can't believe we went through that commissary food in three months…it seemed like so much at the time…"

"Maybe you shouldn't have opened the door," Lee suggested, monotone, and although he didn't mean for his words to have ill intent, the dark skinned man saw that as Mark's face flashed guiltily that the Caucasian man had perceived it that way.

"Yeah, except I'd probably _be_ food by now," Mark defended softly, his grip on his gun not slacking at all "trust me, I have no regrets." Lee couldn't hold it against the other man; Lee would've done the same.

"Well that's hardly a meal Mark, but I'd take it," Lee shrugged, and with a grumble of his empty stomach, the dark skinned man added "we're all hungry."

"Last night, I heard Kenny and Lilly arguing, again," Mark said quietly, as he scanned the surrounding area for walkers "they never stop, do they?" Lee let a gentle smile appear on his face, and he nodded.

"Can you blame them," Lee replied, listening out for any potential meals or for anything that would make the two men potential meals "both headstrong..both thing they're right..and if you add in the fact that everyone's hungry, then you got a recipe for disaster.." Mark nodded in agreement.

"I wish we knew for sure how much food we have left," Mark muttered, yet her ignored his hunger so he didn't come off as needy. He knew there were hungrier people in the group.

"Not enough," Lee said vaguely, his eyebrows furrowing and a frown slipping onto his face "according to Lilly, we've just about hit the last of our food reserves. Some people might have to go without tonight." It was true. Lilly had pulled Lee aside last week and urged him to take any morsel of food he could, as they were nearing the end of the food they had attained. Last time anyone had ate was yesterday, and that was the kids, Lilly and Katjaa. It was an arbitrary system they had. It was all up to whoever was distributing the food.

"You mean Lilly's lottery again," Mark questioned, and Lee nodded in response "Kenny's gonna be pissed." That would be a surprise to no one, as the most minor of provocations sent the two into a spiral of arguing.

"Lilly thinks everyone should have an equal chance of missing a meal," Lee stated, and the dark skinned man himself disagreed. He thought that the kids shouldn't go without and only rarely should they miss a meal.

"You think Kenny's havin' any more luck than we are out here," Mark mused. Lee certainly hoped so, because then there'd be a slender chance that everybody would be able to eat tonight.

"I sure hope so," Lee vocalised his feelings.

"Yeah, between the lack of food and Kenny and Lilly fighting all the time, things are getting pretty tense back at the motor inn," Mark stated "Kenny's been talking about taking off if he can get that RV running." The vehicle in question was the catalyst for most of the arguments in the motor inn. Lilly proclaimed that remaining in a stable environment was the best bet they had, but Kenny had retaliated that they can't make any progress in any way if they stayed in one place.

"He's got a wife and son to look out for," Lee sighed, and the faces of Duck and Katjaa flashed in his mind.

"And they're safest in a big group," Mark said, and his words were said somewhat pointedly "going out on his own will get them all killed." Lee shuddered to think what that would do to the irritable Floridian.

"Can't blame him though," Mark continued "did you hear Larry go off on him last night? What's the old guy's deal anyway? Seems like he's got a problem with you in particular." Lee pondered a response. He didn't want to incite drama between the members of the group, but he longed to let out his frustrations about the elderly man.

"He thinks I'm a danger to the group; and Clementine," Lee said, somewhat sadly. Lee didn't want to divulge why Larry thought such a thing about him, but he wasn't lying. Larry had said that before. Lee would never hurt Clementine, or any of the group, for that matter.

"I think he's the one putting us in danger," Mark uttered his own to cents about the divisive man, as he gazed at a lone bird flying overhead "the way Lilly worries about his health..I wouldn't be surprised if he started skimming rations for him. And I know Lilly thinks he's getting weaker, but the guy's all muscle! He's a walking pile driver. I know I wouldn't wanna be stuck in a room with him. Didn't he punch you in the face one time?" Admittedly, if Lilly did start showing bias towards her father, Lee wouldn't have too much sympathy for the chestnut haired woman if Kenny turned on her.

"Knocked me flat," Lee said, somewhat venomously, staring at the ground, recalling the incident. Before Lee could say anything else, Mark suddenly surged forward and dove behind a rock, with Lee following, but less urgently.

Mark aimed at a bird, which sat in a tree, not realising the danger it was in. Lee stared at Mark curiously before uttering "can you make the shot? I'd hate to waste the bullets.."

"I wouldn't shoot if I couldn't make it," Mark retorted, with good a good natured smirk, before lining up the shot, and pulling the trigger. However, the crow quickly flew off, as the sound of the gunshot echoed into the wood. Before anything else could be said or done, a loud, female, yell suddenly echoed through the area.

"AHH!"

"A-A woman? Is Lilly out here," Mark stuttered, shocked and confused at the sudden development "should we go help her?!"

"Let's go check it out first, see if we can help or Kenny's there first," Lee said, his mind running a mile a minute "c'mon!" And with that, the two men sprinted through the wood, dodging the undergrowth, and their weapons readied to kill.

The run through the forest was tense and Lee could hear his heartbeat in his ears. There was no activity in either of the men's vision and they couldn't hear anything besides their own panting and their footsteps crushing whatever they landed on. The same female voice rang out again, and Lee and Mark continued running in the direction of the voice.

Eventually they stumbled on Kenny, however he was accompanied by nine unknown people, one of whom was in the clutches of a bear trap. The woman in the bear trap was being talked to by a Hispanic man, and a pre-teen girl, presumably her daughter, was rocking back and forth against a rock, while she was talked to by a larger woman.

"Jesus Christ," Mike uttered, and Kenny whipped around to meet them, his face contorted in an expression that was a mixture of confusion, anger and exhaustion.

"Lee! Mark! Thank Christ you're here," Kenny exclaimed, as two men, one with hazel eyes and hair and the other with a black mullet, turned to face him, a gun in each of their grips "I-I don't know what to do! These folks are tryna free this woman, Maria I think her name is? She got caught in a bear trap, and we're tryna free her, but I don't think it's lookin' good…"

"Be quiet," the Hispanic man snapped, and checked the woman's ankle, and as he spoke to her, his voice softened "Maria, your ankle may have to be amputated if we get out of her quickly. Not unless this bear trap can be damaged enough." Maria, at the mention of her ankle being severed, went pale, but quickly quelled the fear. However, a dark skinned woman then stepped forward, her eyes narrowed.

"Are you sure Carlos? I mean, this guy has an axe! Maybe he can cut the chain," she advised, gesturing to Lee and his weapon "it's worth a shot!" Carlos turned to Lee, and stood up, approaching Lee.

"Hello, my name is Carlos," Carlos introduced himself, then gestured to the woman "that is my wife Maria. That is our daughter, Sarah." Carlos gestured to the almost comatose teenager, and the woman who had been comforting her, stood up with a warm smile on her face.

"Hey there! My name's Jessie, but you can just call me Jess," she said, and gestured to the chain "if you wouldn't mind, could you help free my friend?" Lee was stunned and somewhat unnerved by the woman's nonchalant tone, but nonetheless, Lee obliged, mostly out of fear for what this new group would do.

"Stand back-"

"Shit! Lurkers," the black haired man yelled, and raised his gun, and the Hazel haired man beside him copied his actions, and a larger, dark skinned man and a white haired man did the same. Kenny turned to Lee as Mark join the men and began firing.

"We'll cover you; just get that woman outta there," Kenny yelled, and soon, the six men were mowing down walkers with their firearms, and Carlos knelt next to Maria.

"Maria, I won't lie to you," Carlos sighed and brushed Maria's hair from her face "this will hurt. But just scream your heart out, because the lurker's already know we're here. And squeeze my hand, ok?" Maria nodded, biting back tears, as Jesse and the dark skinned woman from earlier blocked Sarah from witnessing such a thing.

Lee raised his axe with a churning feeling in his stomach, before bringing it down just above where the woman's ankle was caught. Maria let out a horrendous screech, as Carlos kept his hand on her stomach and held back tears. "Just h-hold on Maria, ok," Carlos uttered, as he squeezed Maria's hand gently.

Lee removed the axe from the deep incision made in Maria's leg, before seining it back down mercilessly. Maria then emitted a guttural roar, as the incision was made deeper. Carlos didn't say anything, but instead placed a kiss against Maria's forehead, which was dripping with sweat. Jesse was covering Sarah's ears, while the dark skinned woman kept watch in case a walker stumbled upon them.

Lee then stood back up, and removed the axe again, and blood poured from the wound, and Maria flopped bad, exhausted and crying weakly. "Please…just cut it off," Maria begged, not even having the energy to writhe in pain. Lee closed his eyes, before bringing the axe down again on the open wound.

Finally, the bone gave away and tendons and muscles were severed, and Maria was free. Carlos immediately picked her up, careful not to irritate the wound, and the men then started to fall back. "Ok, let's get out of here," Kenny exclaimed "you can come back to ours, but then you have to leave once Maria's better!" Carlos nodded, before the large group started running, except for Sarah who was being carried by the Hazel haired man.

 _Lilly is not going to be happy._

* * *

 **Yeah so I know there's two stories now, but I had this idea and had to get it out of my system! Ben is not found in the forest and instead is replaced with the cabin group, and the members of said group will be younger and Rebecca will not be pregnant, as that only occurred during her initial stay at Carver's Camp. Other than that, thank you!**


	2. Hunger

_**Honestly didn't intend for the chapter to be as long as it is. The chapter is mostly character interaction and the revalation that they're all infected, as well as the intrusion of a certain two brothers.**_

 _ **legoryan4579 - Thank you for your review! As for CarLee; I don't know if Lee will get together with anyone in the story, as it might take away from the father/daughter dynamic he has with Clementine. Maybe though!**_

 _ **To those who favourited and followed: thank you! Now on with the chapter!**_

* * *

"Get the gates open, we've got wounded!"

That was the first thing Lee yelled when he burst from the overgrowth, and he could see the anger form on Lilly's face, which only intensified as more and more people joined his side. She jumped down from the top of the RV as the makeshift gates were pried apart by other members of the group.

"Kat, can you fix her," Kenny questioned, as Maria was lain in the back of Kenny's pick up, with a trail of blood following, and Katjaa put her hands to her head, eyes widened in shock, and shook her head.

"Jesus Ken, I-I don't know," Katjaa replied, and examined the wound, and Carlos joined her side, and before Katjaa could say anything, he rolled up his sleeves.

"Lee!"

"I'm a doctor," Carlos explained, and Maria whimpered as he prodded at the wound "sorry dear, but I need to do this, alright?" Maria nodded, as a tear went down the side of her cheek from her eye, and Katjaa retrieved some thread and needle, which Carlos began to utilise to close up the still tender wound.

"Lee!"

"Sarah, go over and, uh, I dunno, go over to those kids and help draw, ok," the Hazel haired man said, running a hand through said locks "Jesus fuckin' Christ, Maria..Carlos, is she gonna be-"

"LEE!"

Somehow, above all the din, Lilly was not only heard, but she silenced everyone, other than Maria, who was crying softly at the pain. "What the hell were you thinking," Lilly hissed, her brown eyes narrowed at the new members, who were either glaring at Lilly, staring fearfully at Maria or staring at the ground nervously "we don't need more people, we have to take care of our own first! We can't take in every lost soul or survivor that stumbles across us!"

"Lilly, I had no choice," Lee uttered darkly "I cut off her leg-"

"Bullshit you had no choice," Larry boomed, unsurprisingly gaining the attention of most people surrounding them "you just had to play the hero, and try to save everyone, while putting everyone in danger!"

"I think we should all calm down," Jess said, putting her hand up, but she accomplished nothing as Larry glared at the chubby woman.

"Pipe down you, you're no different to us than a walker out there-"

"You better shut your fuckin' mouth," the black haired man said, his azure eyes sending a piercing glare to Larry "or I'll put a bullet through your fuckin' head!" His words then caught Lilly's attention.

"Don't you dare threaten my dad you asshole," Lilly snapped, walking forward with her fists clenched "or I'll feed you to the walkers myself. In pieces." Now it was Jess' turn to add fuel to the fire.

"I may be a little bit older, but if you touch my son, I will make sure you don't live to tell the tale," Jess uttered. Lee could see that this wouldn't help the situation at all, so instead he inserted himself in the centre of the circle to catch everyone's attention.

"Ok! Everyone's on edge," Lee said in a loud, yet soothing voice, and everyone stopped yelling to listen, but Lee couldn't stop talking or else the fighting would begin again "so I think we should sit back, wait 'till Carlos and Katjaa give their verdict and work from there."

"If these bunch of assholes think they can stay here, forget it! We don't have a lot of food as it is, don't think we can divide it even more," Larry exclaimed, and Carlos was so irritated by his yelling he took a moment to look back.

"Don't curse in front of the children or else I will make you regret it," Carlos said chillingly, and Larry looked like he wanted to argue with the Hispanic man, but Lilly placed a placating hand on her father's shoulder, and he calmed down, but kept a caustic glare trained on the new group, Nick in particular.

"C'mon Nick, let's go sit down," Jess muttered soothingly, and guided her son to sit down in some unoccupied lawn chairs. Jess knew better than anyone else that Nick had a temper, and if pushed to breaking point, could do some real damage if he wanted. The Hazel haired man watched Nick leave, before walking over to Lee.

"I'm Luke," he said to the African American man with an awkward smile, and then gestured to the couple bickering on the balcony overhead, while Carley watched on, clearly uncomfortable "that's Rebecca and Alvin, they're always arguin' 'bout somethin' or another, but they love each other, really."

He then nodded to Jess and Nick. "You know Jess and Nick," Luke said and Lee nodded "and you were already introduced to Carlos and his family, so, uh, yeah.." Luke finished awkwardly, and Lee offered a weak smile.

"Lee, can you come over here please," Lilly called from the hood of the RV, which was open, exposing the intricate metal insides of the RV. Lee clapped Luke on the shoulder, before strolling over to Lilly, who had her hands on her hips.

"I have four pieces of food," Lilly stated, and revealed half an apple, a piece of jerky and two packets of cracker and cheese "you seem to love playing the hero, so you can decide who eats tonight." And with those short instructions, Lilly ascended the ladder to her post at the top of the RV, leaving Lee to have numerous hungry eyes stare at him.

"The kids have to eat," Lee muttered, and made his way towards Clementine, Duck and Sarah. He saw Clementine and Duck scribbling some messy drawings, while Sarah simply rocked back and forth, her eyes trained on the ground. Lee shifted from one foot to the other, before bending down to Clementine's level. He was about to offer some food, but he spotted how Clementine didn't have the hat that she always did.

"Where's your hat, Clem?"

"I dunno…I-I lost it," Clementine admitted, staring at the ground "can you help me find it?"

"Sure, Clem," Lee said instantly. No matter what, Lee would always do everything he could to accommodate Clementine's needs, no matter how trivial.

"Thank you," Clem said with a small smile, and turned back to her drawing, but Lee quickly turned her back around, and handed the small girl half an apple. Clementine squealed, and took a bite of the apple and looked at Lee "I love apples! Are there any more?" Lee smiled at the girl's happiness, but shook her head.

"Sorry Clem, there aren't," Lee signed and Clementine looked down sadly. Lee couldn't think of anything to comfort the girl, but he did pat her on the head, which she smiled at. Lee then turned to Duck, who was drawing some crude version of Superman.

"Hey Duck, want something to eat," Lee offered and Duck turned to him with a wide smile. Lee considered giving him the jerky or one of the cracker and cheese packets, so he decided to give the young boy a piece of jerky.

"Awesome," Duck exclaimed, and immediately began devouring the piece of food "'fank you!" Lee smirked at the child's actions. Lee threw a glance at Sarah, and went to give her some food, but then Jess interrupted him.

"Lee, sweetheart, if you're thinkin' of givin' Sarah some o' that food, I think it'd be better to wait," Jess explained from the lawn chair she was sat in "she's a bit, uh, preoccupied right now." Lee saw how the girl wasn't taking notice of anything around her, not even the food the two kids beside her were eating, so Lee decided it would be best to leave the girl.

Lee walked over to Lilly and looked up to her, but Lilly didn't give Lee the privilege of a glance and instead kept her eyes trained on the forest ahead. Lee waited for a few more moments before Lilly relented and glared down at Lee. "Yes," Lilly said, waiting for Lee's question.

"You want anythin' to eat," Lee said with a raised eyebrow. He really did not need the attitude right now. Lilly scoffed at Lee's words.

"Everyone wants to eat," Lilly spat, her eyes squinting in anger. After a few more moments, Lilly looked down, and gave Lee a sorry look.

"Sorry Lee, I just…has my dad eaten yet," Lilly inquired and Lee looked down to avoid Lilly's gaze and scratched the back of his neck "thought so. I don't care if I don't eat, but my dad needs the energy." Lee looked back at Larry, who didn't show any signs of weakness as he hammered away and grumbled at Mark simultaneously.

Lee looked around at the new group's members and considered giving them something to eat. Would it be worth it? Or would it just cause more unnecessary drama with already established members of his own group? Lee sighed, and saw two pieces of food left. Who would be his closest ally would be the better question. He supposed he'd have to do some talking to see if somebody really needed it.

He walked over to Jess and Nick, who were both silent toward each other, instead just listening to the arguments between Larry and whoever crossed his path. The pair looked up at Lee; Jess warmly, but Nick had more of a glare set on Lee.

"So, uh, when was the last time both of you ate," Lee inquired and both of them furrowed their eyebrows "you don't need to answer."

"We'll I ate yesterday, thank to Pete and Nick," Jess said proudly, clapping her son on the back "and Nick ate a few days ago, kept givin' me meals, but I know better than him when I can eat!" Nick blushed slightly, and Lee nodded, before turning around to look over his shoulder.

"Uh, who needs food the most in the group, in your opinion," Lee asked and Nick instantly sat up, while Jess rolled her eyes.

"Luke," Nick stated, nodding to the Hazel haired man as he hammered away at the wood "he hasn't eaten in a while-"

"Nick, honey, he ate yesterday," Jess interrupted with a coy smile, and Nick looked down, crossing his arm "Lord, he can look after himself honey." Lee looked back at Luke who was now the brunt of Larry's yelling.

"You close," Lee asked, arms crossed over his chest. Nick looked down, his cap covering his face which was now covered in an intense blush, while Jess chuckled lowly beside him. Lee raised an eyebrow, before Nick murmured his reply.

"We're, uh, together, y'know, like, uh, together together," Nick stuttered out his reply while Jess rolled his eyes, however Nick's demeanour quickly changed to defensive "you don't have a problem with that, do you?"

"What? No," Lee said, standing back up straight, his eyes soft "I don't give a shit…the only person who might care is Larry over there." Nick and Jess both leaned over to look at the elderly man who was crassly telling Mark and Luke about his time in the military, making sure to pepper insults into the sentences.

Nick seemed to become angry even though the old man did nothing, but Jess placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "Thank you Lee, for warning us," Jess said with a smile, but the smile conveyed the sense that the conversation had hit its end, so Lee quickly excused himself.

Lee walked over to Alvin and Rebecca, who were talking in hushed tones, Rebecca being the angrier of the two. As they spotted Lee approaching they quickly quelled their arguing, and Rebecca chose to glare at Lee, while Alvin smiled invitingly at the dark skinned man. As soon as Lee reached them, Rebecca spat out "what do you want?"

"Now, now, Rebecca," Alvin soothed, and turned back to Lee "sorry, we're just a bit on edge-"

"You're damn right about that," Rebecca muttered and Lee bit back his tongue. He had almost cursed at the pair of them, but Lee decided that now wasn't the time. Lee crossed his arms like before and smiled at the pair, but the smile was forced slightly.

"I got food here," Lee confessed, and the pair's eyes widened slightly "I'll give it to you, but I need an honest answer. When was the last time you ate?" The pair gave each other looks with furrowed eyebrows, before turning back to Lee.

"I ate two days ago," Alvin admitted, and Lee nodded, while Rebecca decided to interject with her confession.

"I ate yesterday," Rebecca informed, but before anything else could be said, Alvin chose to speak.

"Lee, I'd, uh, be very grateful if you gave Rebecca food," Alvin said while Rebecca gasped a scandalised 'Alvin!', yet Alvin soldiered on "just she's…I'd be very grateful." Lee's eyes flew between the pair, before reaching into his back pocket and handing over a cracker and cheese packet.

"Oh my.."

"Thank you, Lee," Alvin sighed "we'll always remember this." Lee smiled humbly, and wavered the thank you and said that it was his pleasure to do so, while Rebecca, somewhat nervously, ate the food.

Lee, seeing that the pair wanted some alone time to talk, decided to go talk with Larry, Mark and Luke, who were all caught up in conversation (it was more like Larry's ramblings while the two men listened on). Lee walked up slowly so he could hear more of the conversation as he neared.

"…and that's how I saved the pharmacy," Larry finished proudly, sticking his chest out as if to assert dominance "of course, others helped, but I made sure to-"

"Hey guys," Lee decided then to interrupt in case Larry create any false claims of Lee messing up or intentionally putting the group in danger "what's goin' on?" Larry's eyes widened slightly, but he simply scowled instead of renouncing his false claims of saving the pharmacy.

"Hey Lee," Mark greeted, taking a break from adjusting the fence "we were just talking here." Luke gave Lee a wave, and Lee smiled and gave Luke a curt nod in response. Larry however, turned around with the familiar frown he always had.

"Why don't you just leave us alone," Larry suggested coldly "we were doin' fine until you decided to interrupt us." Mark and Luke gave similar looks of disgust to Larry while Lee rolled his eyes.

"C'mon Larry," Mark sighed "cut it out. I'm pretty sure Lee's getting pretty sick of you thinking he's a danger to the group." Lee closed his eyes and wished the floor would swallow him whole as Larry stared at Lee with some sort of twisted sense of amusement.

"Is that what you've been tellin' 'em," Larry growled, his face now void of humour and replaced with anger. Lee felt a surge of rebellion and anger in his gut and acted rashly in that moment.

"Yeah! Because you haven't really changed your attitude have you," Lee snapped and Larry walked forward threateningly, eyes ablaze with fury, and Luke put himself between the two warring men.

"Hey now, let's all calm down now," Luke proposed softly, and Larry watched Lee with a venomous eye, before turning back around to hammer at the plank of wood, projecting all his undone actions into the job. Nick was watching the altercation, ready to assist Luke at any moment, but slowly sat down, only due to Luke waving him down and Jess pulling him back into his seat.

Lee didn't want to push the situation further, so he simply walked over to Kenny, who was sitting in the shade with a rifle, watching the kids with a close eye. He didn't know these people. Not that he truly thought they were dangerous, but he knew that they were unpredictable. Who's to say they wouldn't do something crazy?

"Hey Ken," Lee greeted with a smile and Kenny returned a smirk in response, wiping his rifle with an already dirty cloth "you hungry?" Kenny gave Lee a curious look before nodding to Duck.

"My boy, he eat yet," Kenny asked and Lee nodded "shit, then hand it over!" Lee passed the moustachioed man the food, and he devoured it quickly, shooting Lee a thankful look. Lee waited, before looking over his shoulder, and leaning into Kenny.

"So you really thinking of leaving this place," Lee asked, and Kenny nodded, but before anything else could be said, there was a strangled wail.

"NO," Carlos choked out, and Lee sprinted to the truck with Rebecca, Alvin, Luke and Nick joining him while Jess went to shield Sarah "NO, NO, NO! MARIA, WAKE UP! WAKE UP!" Lee stood beside Katjaa, and saw Maria lying there, mouth agape and her pupils dilated, only seeing darkness.

"No..no..Maria," Carlos sobbed, leaning against the truck, fat tears falling from his expressive brown eyes "why God…why.." The rest of the group had joined to watch the drama unfold, and even Larry knew not to say something tactless.

Carlos stood up, and Katjaa put her hand on Carlos' shoulder. "C-Carlos, I-I'm so sorry," Carlos took no notice of her, and Luke walked forward.

"Carlos, you want me to take care of her," he asked softly, and Carlos nodded, eyes watering as he made his way to where Sarah was, and Rebecca followed, no doubt prepared to give him moral support.

Lee looked at Lilly and said "prepare a grave, will you?" Lilly nodded, and Mark followed her, both with their weapons drawn in case of unneeded attention. The group dispersed, somber, and Lee crossed his arms.

"Luke, I'm..sorry," Lee said, not knowing what other words could help comfort the man "she seemed like a good woman." Luke remained silent, and unsheathed his weapon, which caused Lee to stumble back cautious.

"Luke, don't do anything- LUKE," Lee yelled, but that didn't stop Luke from bringing the machete down brutally into Maria's face, smashing into her skull and severing her brain "Luke, what the hell?!" Nick immediately ran over, with the rest of the group, to Luke and glared at Lee, but Luke waved him down.

"Whaddya mean 'what the hell'," Luke asked, confused "I put her down-"

"You mean she was bitten," Larry exclaimed, his anger renewed and Lilly returned with narrowed eyes "Lilly, get these people out of here, they're insane! They brought a bitten person back without telling us!"

"Hey, fuck you man," Nick hissed, while Rebecca stepped forward, her signature scowl sitting on her dark skinned face, and her reply was dripping with sass.

"I don't mean to rain on your parade, but would you rather have your daughter get bitten? Because either its that or we kill her," Rebecca snapped, and Lilly turned to her.

"So she was bitten," Lilly growled but Alvin shook his head.

"No, she just died by the bear trap," Alvin said "we had to kill her anyway!"

"What bullshit am I hearin'," Kenny exclaimed, his Floridian accent lacing his words "kill her anyway? The fuck you talkin' 'bout pal? I don't know if you haven't watched normal apocalypse films like the rest of us, but the bite is the thing that turns you." Obvious tension was filling the air, but then Luke ran a hand through his air, releasing a tense breath.

"You guys don't know, do you," Luke asked softly, and Kenny crossed his arms, his thick eyebrows an inch apart.

"What do you mean, we don't know," Lilly asked, before Kenny could muster up a much more tactless, loud reply "what is there to know?" Luke looked down before wiping at his eyes as the full situation set in, that Maria was dead.

"It's not the bite that does it," Luke said sadly, and the motel group was taken aback by this new information "we're all infected, no matter what. No matter how you die, you will turn. It's like it's genetics or somethin'." The group were all stunned, and many stopped breathing, or let out short breaths in reaction to this.

"We saw it, first time, with this guy we shot in the woods," Luke continued, trying to dispel the macabre atmosphere "he tried to hurt Sarah, so Maria shot him in the chest..he turned soon after..you have to destroy the brain, no matter what you do, or else you turn regardless.."

"That'd explain how so many of them are around," Carley theorised, her voice quiet. Lee looked up the cloudy sky, and vocalised every members feelings.

"God help us."

However, before anything else could be said, the snapping of twigs, brought many of the group to the edge, and they drew their weapons at the sudden intrusion of two men. "Hey, get back," Lilly hissed, her voice drenched in anger "or I shoot!" It was clear that this news was bringing everyone to the edge.

"Howdy folks, we don't mean no harm," one of the men said, and Lee noted how both of them carried gasoline canisters "we were just wonderin' if we could borrow some gas!"

"Who are you, first of all," Carley said, trying to take control of the situation before Lilly fired a bullet she'd regret. The first brother smiled and gestured to himself with his free hand.

"We're the St. John's, Andy and Danny."


End file.
